From a Thief in Shillong to a Waiter in Agra, Here's the Story of the Migrant Worker Who Committed Suicide

By: Anumita Das

"I was a thief from Shillong and I thought it's better to move out from there because I wanted to change my life." By now, many of you must have come across reports of the youth named Aldrin Lyngdoh who took his life after the "change" he tried to adapt in Agra.

His suicide note went viral, prompting the Meghalaya authorities to try every possible way to give Lyngdoh a decent burial in Delhi's Meghalaya House. However, more than the fact that there has been a suicide due to the nationwide lockdown, Aldrin's story must be known. A few other things that are "little" and hence often ignored in life should also be discussed.

When we think of Agra, the symbol of love - Taj Mahal, instantly pops up. Aldrin Lyngdoh, the youth from Meghalaya must have also heard about it and somehow, he must have nurtured a hope that love exists in this unfair world. He began a new life in Agra, a life that had nothing to do with his ugly past in his hometown, Shillong.

Aldrin's parents in Shillong had passed away. He could not continue with the petty theft that he used to do for a living. Somehow, he had to move on by keeping his past behind and taking things in his stride.

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Aldrin was born to a humble family in Shillong. His parents had died long before he could learn how to deal with the complexities of life or it's consequences. He chose thievery as a livelihood option as it was the easiest way to get along the daily struggle of doing at least something for the sake of doing. However, Aldrin felt that he needed to change his ways and therefore, he decided to leave his foster parents behind in Shillong and travel to Agra to find himself a decent job.

From a petty thief, Aldrin became a waiter at a food joint called Sikandra Kargil Food Court Restaurant. Everything was going smooth in Agra. He was serving the people who came to relish the North Indian delicacies at the food joint and his income source was fixed for the moment. Little did he know that his life would soon be turned topsy-turvy by the onset of the global pandemic, the coronavirus.

As soon as India started to feel the pinch of coronavirus with more and more cases of the China-originated virus, tourist spots were ordered to shut, mass gatherings were prohibited and then Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared 'Janata Curfew' on March 22, 2020. Movement was temporarily halted for 12 hours on that day apart from a gap of 5-10 minutes for expressing gratitude to the doctors, police and others who had become 'warriors' to deal with the crisis.

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Aldrin's workplace was also shut temporarily at first and then came the nationwide lockdown on March 25, 2020, announced by the Prime Minister. Barring the essentials, all others had to suspend their services and action would be taken against violators. Sikandra Kargil Food Court Restaurant also forced to shut shop. But Aldrin, who came to Agra with the hope of a better life, was shattered. His employer, Seema Chaudhury asked him to leave the place and "go wherever he wanted to" amid the pan-India lockdown. There was no transport mode that was operating, everything was shut, people stayed indoors like they were asked to.

Aldrin had nowhere to go, no oneto talk to about his ordeal and there was an emotional distance between him and others around him, who had decided to practice social distancing as well as emotional distancing. On the fifth day, March 30, he penned a suicide note.

He wrote to Robin Hibu, IPS in charge of NE Affairs in Delhi. His message - "iam Aldrin lyngdoh i was Born from a poor family my mom my dead expired so i had 2move on to do something 4myself n i was a thief from Shillong n i thought better 2move out from dr bcoz i want 2change my life n i work here Agra uttar Pradesh sikandra kargil shanti food court resturent modi have closed all way 4me nowhere 2go were i ll go n the owner also he don't feel petty for me seema chadhauary she told go were ever u want 2go so we're i ll go plz help me i don't know we're 2go only 1way i see suicide dat all i just want a help from u plz if u have humanity plz take my dead body 2my town so dat i can relax plz in the name of god plz bcoz 2day i ll be no more help me out plz iam not joking plz help me out f da dei para khasi iarap lang seh ia ki met nga bn tp hane ha Shillong to iarap she think dat her father in low is minister n she can do whatever she like plz show them how she kill me plz."

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At around midnight, Aldrin committed suicide after being unable to do anything to come out of the situation. Meghalaya author and social activist, Patricia Mukhim, who shared Aldrin's letter through her Facebook profile, wrote, "We trust Aldrin will forgive us all for failing him and perhaps many young people like him who struggle to find meaning in life but are treated like pariahs. In some ways we have failed our younger generation. I appeal to young people to please come and have a chat when you feel that life gets too wretched and no one understands you. Just come and we can talk......please...."

There lies a deeper message in Aldrin's story and Mukhim's message -- Talking and sharing helps. Not right away, but if one gets to talk their heart out, help will somehow make its way through.

Meanwhile, the Government of Meghalaya has written to the Government of Uttar Pradesh regarding the matter. "...In his social media post which was circulated online, the deceased had mentioned the name of owner, Smti Seema Chaudhary, who had terminated him from work, which is a violation of the Government Order No.40-3/2020-DM-I(A) dated New Delhi, 29th March 2020 issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs," the letter addressed by Chief Secretary, Meghalaya, MS Rao to Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary, Rajendra Kumar Tiwari, stated.

He has requested the Uttar Pradesh Government to investigate the matter and take the "necessary action" against the employer. He has requested to make arrangements to transport the body of the deceased to Meghalaya House in New Delhi.

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